That's really stupid but typical of Comcast - for future ref I would call the activation number back and ask to be escalated to level 2, who can fix your account/card without a roll. That's all a tech is going to do anyway.

I also picked up a card recently and did self-install in a PC Cablecard tuner (the HDHomerun Prime). Callled, got it paired and activated and had no problems at all, every channel was mapped and they all worked right away. So it can be a good experience.

That's really stupid but typical of Comcast - for future ref I would call the activation number back and ask to be escalated to level 2, who can fix your account/card without a roll. That's all a tech is going to do anyway.

I also picked up a card recently and did self-install in a PC Cablecard tuner (the HDHomerun Prime). Callled, got it paired and activated and had no problems at all, every channel was mapped and they all worked right away. So it can be a good experience.

The tech I talked to on the activation line was consulting with a level 2 tech but he apparently said there was nothing he could do. The guy that came to my house had to use a different cable card too. But I agree that these things should not happen.

Which makes no sense, because you'd think a card should be programmable for any headend remotely. I guess they have some way of init'ing them at the warehouse that locks them into a given headend. And since you have no way of knowing which card is which, they roll a tech and play musical cards.

I haven't dealt with cable cards for awhile and I still thought they had to send someone out. I called Comcast to schedule the install and he told me I could just go to the service center, but here's the thing... He told me to take the Tivo to the service center for them to put it in. Have other people had that done? or is everyone just picking up the card?

I haven't dealt with cable cards for awhile and I still thought they had to send someone out. I called Comcast to schedule the install and he told me I could just go to the service center, but here's the thing... He told me to take the Tivo to the service center for them to put it in. Have other people had that done? or is everyone just picking up the card?

I just picked up the card and managed to figure out how to slide it in all by myself.

(It did take several calls to the activation number and finally the -COMCAST number to get all my channels...something was wrong with my customer record evidently. But the physical install was simple.)

I was gonna run over and pick up the card for my parents.
Do you just tell them your account info or do they want to see ID?
I don't live with my parents and I'd rather not drag one of them to the office.

I was gonna run over and pick up the card for my parents.
Do you just tell them your account info or do they want to see ID?
I don't live with my parents and I'd rather not drag one of them to the office.

You probably want to call the office first to make sure. My wife picked up the card. Her name is on the bill and I think she had to show ID (but she didn't have the account info with her.) They mentioned that I would not have been able to pick it up because (at the time) I was not listed on the account.

I was gonna run over and pick up the card for my parents.
Do you just tell them your account info or do they want to see ID?
I don't live with my parents and I'd rather not drag one of them to the office.

I'm fuming here, and hoping some of you can help me. Hopefully this is the right thread?

we live in a rural area, we have Comcast. You can get a DVR through Comcast but we don't have one. My inlaws got us a TIVO Premiere for Christmas.

I called the comcast 1800 #, they're telling me that I have to pick up the cablecard from my local office.

So I go to my local office, and they are adamant that they cannot get me the card. Lady in the office gave me the area supervisor (?)'s phone #, he basically was like "can't get you a card. don't know about the law. here is my supervisor's name and #"

They are claiming we're too rural and they don't work here.

I've called and left a message with that guy. I've also talked to Tivo and they are telling me that Comcast is breaking 3 federal laws and if I don't get anywhere to file a complaint with the FCC.

anything else I can/should do? I was under the impression that if I can get a DVR and digital channels, they legally had to be able to let me use a TIVO box?

I tweeted @comcastcares this morning. they forwarded my info to the person that I talked to earlier today who gave me all that bit about the nodes. I basically told her that I didn't really care if their technology was out of date, I was being told by Tivo that they are Comcast and therefore have to abide by the FCC rules. She told me they'd call me back tonight.

I just got a phone call from the guy in charge of this area, the one I spoke to yesterday when the office wouldn't give me a cablecard. He's bringing by a Cablecard tomorrow morning. Hahahaha.

TV-wise, I basically get everything except for the premium channels (HBO, Starz, etc) including all non-Premium HD channels. There is no HD programming fee or additional digital outlet charges and CableCards are $1.50 each. The reason why I'm only paying for 3 cards when I have 4 is because the first card is considered my digital set-top box.

Just a quick update and it isn't a pleasant one for me. I got my latest bill last week from Comcast and I now have a $10 HD Technology Fee and a $24 ($8 x 3) Additional Outlet Fee tacked onto my cable bill. They are also charging me for 4 CableCards. I'm not sure what changed but I did a tech come out on a service call because I was having CableCard problems with my Series# TiVo. He replaced one of the S-Cards with an M-Card and during the pairing process I did hear him say something about an HD Fee to the tech he was talking to. Anyways, online chat was worthless (said they can't handle these types of billing issues) so I'm off to visit my local service center tomorrow morning to get this straightened out... ugh!

Just a quick update and it isn't a pleasant one for me. I got my latest bill last week from Comcast and I now have a $10 HD Technology Fee and a $24 ($8 x 3) Additional Outlet Fee tacked onto my cable bill. They are also charging me for 4 CableCards. I'm not sure what changed but I did a tech come out on a service call because I was having CableCard problems with my Series# TiVo. He replaced one of the S-Cards with an M-Card and during the pairing process I did hear him say something about an HD Fee to the tech he was talking to. Anyways, online chat was worthless (said they can't handle these types of billing issues) so I'm off to visit my local service center tomorrow morning to get this straightened out... ugh!

Additional Outlet fee is legit. If the $10 HD fee is for the cable cards, you're being scammed. Remind them of this:
"Your first CableCARD is provided at no charge; if you need a second one for the same device, you’ll be charged $1.50/month."
That's for each outlet. If you pay for four outlets, you get four cablecards, all for the price of four outlets.

Note however that "A technician is required to install and activate the CableCARD in a TiVo Series 3HD" is actually wrong. Self install kits are required per FCC.

Also, billing issues can be handled over the phone to save you a trip to the office (and waiting in line). Note however that the billing department isn't always there in the middle of the night.

Just a quick update and it isn't a pleasant one for me. I got my latest bill last week from Comcast and I now have a $10 HD Technology Fee and a $24 ($8 x 3) Additional Outlet Fee tacked onto my cable bill. They are also charging me for 4 CableCards. I'm not sure what changed but I did a tech come out on a service call because I was having CableCard problems with my Series# TiVo. He replaced one of the S-Cards with an M-Card and during the pairing process I did hear him say something about an HD Fee to the tech he was talking to. Anyways, online chat was worthless (said they can't handle these types of billing issues) so I'm off to visit my local service center tomorrow morning to get this straightened out... ugh!

If you have one CableCard then their shouldn't be any CableCard fees. If you don't have any other devices there shouldn't be any outlet fees, either. The $10 HD Technology Fee is for an HD Cable box, if you don't have one of those, that isn't right either.

I suggest you file a complaint with the FCC. Then tweet @ComcastBill. Seems like your tech and whoever he was talking too and were trying to see what they could do to get more money out of you. This is just outrageous.

If you have one CableCard then their shouldn't be any CableCard fees. If you don't have any other devices there shouldn't be any outlet fees, either. The $10 HD Technology Fee is for an HD Cable box, if you don't have one of those, that isn't right either.

I suggest you file a complaint with the FCC. Then tweet @ComcastBill. Seems like your tech and whoever he was talking too and were trying to see what they could do to get more money out of you. This is just outrageous.

Good news! A quick trip to my local Comcast Service Center was all that was needed to get this resolved. The person I spoke to at the service center said the tech and who ever he was talking to during my service call made a mistake and quickly removed the HD Technology and Additional Outlet fees from my bill. She told me if I decided to add any Comcast HD equipment (STB or DVR), then the HD and Additional Outlet fees would apply but if I "bring my own device", then those fees are waived (at least in my area -- Cupertino, CA).

If that's the location is north Seattle just off Aurora near 130th NE then I have picked up a cable card there. Admittedly that was a about three years ago. Also picked one up at the Lynnwood location around that same time.

If that's the location is north Seattle just off Aurora near 130th NE then I have picked up a cable card there. Admittedly that was a about three years ago. Also picked one up at the Lynnwood location around that same time.

Have they been at the 130th location that long? I remember picking up a CC at the one at 94th & Aurora; I think that was only about two years ago. It was an S-Card, not that they're allowed to hand those out any more.

I just successfully installed one of my old TiVos at my Mother-in-Law's place up in Sacramento. That's in a different region so I wasn't sure how this was going to go. To complicate matters the senior facilty she lives in has some sort of bulk deal with Comcast, she's got an SD cable box and a bunch of channels for "free" (or included in the rent). She's got the first 2 digital basic tiers (starter, but not preferred I think they call them) and also for some strange reason the Speed Channel.

Getting the cable card was simple, picked it up from the local office, but they had to set Mom up with her own account separate from the bulk account. I don't know what havoc that's going to cause when the bill comes in.

The cable card wasn't activated when I plugged it in like it has been when I've got card from my local office here. I had to ring Comcast to get it turned on. That didn't seem to work, but there was a note on the receipt about activating online, that did seem to work and all the channels started coming through.

So now Mom has all the channels she used to have in much better quality. The old Comcast box was connected via RF to her TV, the TiVo is of course connected via HDMI. She also now gets all the HD equivalents of those channel, not that Mom can tell the difference between SD and HD. For some reason the Travel channel wasn't included in the SD package, but the HD version is. So she now has the Travel channel as well.

Have they been at the 130th location that long? I remember picking up a CC at the one at 94th & Aurora; I think that was only about two years ago. It was an S-Card, not that they're allowed to hand those out any more.

You're right. I originally picked the card up when the store was on 94th, and only visited the 130th location (twice) to get the billing on them corrected.

A few days ago I cancelled my DirectTV and purchased a Tivo Premiere with the intention of switching to a bare bones Comcast package (for pricing reasons). I decided to purchase the Digital Economy package and requested a Cable Card install. Digital Economy is essentially basic plus a few additional channels. It does not include on demand or channel guide.

When the installer showed up he was under the impression that I needed at least Digital Starter for the cable card to function. Otherwise, the only way for it to work would be a cable box. He called his technical support and they backed him up. I was not about to pay for the price difference so I sent him home and called Comcast again. I spoke with a few Comcast reps over the course of a few phone calls and some backed up the installer while others said that wasn't true.

I ended up speaking with a very knowledgeable rep and he said that it would not be a problem to have a cable card with digital basic. A different installer came out again today and upon arrival he said the same thing the previous installer said.

I ended up accepting a digital starter package and intend to drop my service to digital basic and hope it works.